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17 May 2013

Christine Baranski

Casting for the film adaptation of Into the Woods continues to take a starry turn. Tony Award winner Christine Baranski and Golden Globe Award winner Emily Blunt are the latest actors reported to be in talks for the fairytale musical, according to the Wrap.

Baranski (Hurlyburly, The Real Thing, "Mamma Mia!") was part of a reading of the screenplay adaptation of Into the Woods last fall, where she played Cinderella's Stepmother. Blunt ("The Devil Wears Prada," "Looper") is in talks to play the principal role of the Baker's Wife.

As previously reported, singer-songwriter Jewel may be looking to add the role of Cinderella to her crown. On May 10 Jewel tweeted, "Stephen Sondheim is a smart bastard. Ha. Try singing On The Steps Of The Palace to his piano part. #CalculusForSingers." On May 13 she added, "Been working hard all weekend on an audition for a movie. Fingers crossed."

Marc Platt, Rob Marshall, John DeLuca and Disney produce the film adaptation of Into the Woods that will be directed by Academy Award-winning "Chicago" director Marshall. "Into the Woods," penned by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, is expected to begin filming in London this September.

Jake Gyllenhaal, who starred in the Off-Broadway drama If There Is I Haven't Found It Yet, and Chris Pine, seen on the New York stage in The Atheist, are in talks to play the Princes. It has also been reported that "Sweeney Todd" star Johnny Depp has closed a deal to portray the Wolf with Tony Award winner James Corden (One Man, Two Guvnors) likely to portray the Baker.

Marshall confirmed to Playbill.com's Seth Rudetksy that Academy Award winner Meryl Streep will star as the Witch in the film adaptation.

Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning Into the Woods book writer Lapine authored the screenplay based on his own book for the 1988 musical. During an October reading of the screenplay, Lapine had streamlined the musical into a two-hour treatment for the screen.

Composer-arranger David Krane (Road to Qatar), who penned the arrangements for Marshall's film adaptations of Chicago and Nine, is working on arrangements for the Into the Woods film adaptation. DeLuca also produced Marshall's screen adaptations of "Nine" and "Chicago."

Into the Woods features a Tony-winning score by Sondheim and Tony-winning book by Lapine, who also staged both Broadway productions of the musical. Into the Woods premiered on Broadway in 1987 at the Martin Beck Theatre starring Bernadette Peters, Chip Zien, Joanna Gleason, Kim Crosby and Robert Westenberg. The original cast performance was preserved by PBS' American Playhouse in 1991. A 2002 Broadway revival played the Broadhurst Theatre.